Podcast

1. Is smart hiring based on wild guesses?

Vivek: Flying blind doesn’t work. If you don’t know what skills drive success in your organization, you’re just making gut-based decisions—and that’s a risky game.

2. Do competencies and performance reviews have any correlation?

Vivek: No, and they shouldn’t. It’s not an either-or scenario. In succession planning, we focus 60% on potential, 40% on past performance. For promotions, it’s a 50/50 split.

3. What is the biggest blunder in leadership succession?

Vivek: Not having a second-in-command. If your top guy leaves and there’s no backup, you’re in trouble. The transition becomes a mess.

4. What is one HR lesson from the Army’s Succession Playbook?

Vivek: Always have a No. 2 ready. In the Army, leaders train their second-in-command in secret. Businesses should do the same—don’t wait for a resignation letter.

5. Can competency assessments stop bad layoff decisions?

Vivek: Layoffs shouldn’t be about who’s liked more. If you assess based on essential skills, you cut bias and make fair, strategic calls.

6. Why are soft skills harder to assess than hard skills?

Vivek: Because they change with context! Communication in a sales team isn’t the same as in an engineering team. Hard skills? You either know them or you don’t.

7. Can HRs trust online competency assessments?

Vivek: For technical roles, yes. But for leadership? Not so much. People tend to give ‘ideal’ answers online. In-person, you can challenge them and see the real deal.

8. Quarterly vs. annual performance reviews: which actually works?

Vivek: Quarterly for growth, annual for rewards. If you’re waiting a whole year to give feedback, you’re setting people up for failure.

9. What’s the most underrated competency in the workplace?

Vivek: Emotional intelligence. We hire for IQ but fire for EQ. You can be a genius, but if you can’t work with people, you won’t last.